I'd Give It All For You
by Candle At Noon
Summary: Axel just can't stop screwing up, and Roxas's patience is wearing thin. A little AkuRoku drabble, because we all know what day it is :D


Happy AkuRoku Day, my dears. :D

xxXXxx

"What the fuck, Axel?" Roxas hissed. He stood for a moment, framed in the doorway and brilliant against the dark sky outside, cheeks flushed. And then he left, slamming the door behind him.

Axel stared. He couldn't think through the music blaring from the room behind him. It forced itself into his throat and ears and mouth and sloshed around inside his thin frame until he thought he might scream, or better yet, burst into flames—but instead, he just stood and stared. Stood and stared until some rusted little gear in his brain slipped and caught and he muttered, "Aw, fuck" before lunging for the door handle. The bright lights and happy sounds inside the house ended sharply as the door shut behind him.

He didn't have to run. His long legs carried him almost into the short blonde within a matter of seconds, which was far too fast for the poor rusty gears in his head to crank out any sort of apology or excuse. So when Roxas snapped his head around to glare at the tall man beside him, Axel found himself staring in silence yet again.

He ran a hand through the large amount of hair that had escaped his fiery ponytail. Roxas flicked his eyes back to the pavement ahead of him with a small noise of disgust. Cringing slightly, Axel said, "Look, Rox, I—"

"Shut up," Roxas growled.

Axel's shoulders slumped. "Roxy…."

"Don't 'Roxy' me," Roxas said, stopping suddenly. He glared up at the redhead. "What the fuck is your problem, Axel?"

Axel looked mildly surprised. "Roxy, he was—he was totally creeping on you," he said, eyebrows leaping together. "I was doing you a favor."

Roxas's face slackened. His mouth moved silently around the word 'favor' before he snorted emphatically and turned to stomp away.

Feeling a little like a neglected puppy, Axel trotted along behind the shorter boy. _Or man?_ Axel wondered. He settled for 'kid.' Roxas would always be a kid in his mind, but he didn't think it had anything to do with their three-year age difference. It might not even be the fact that Axel had to bend down slightly to rest his chin on top of the blonde's head. It was all in Roxas's expressions, in the way he clenched his fists like an indignant child, in the way the corners of his mouth relaxed when Axel cradled the boy's head against his chest.

Sighing, Axel slid his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He studied the back of Roxas's head, then let his eyes trail down the back of the kid's tight black-and-red striped shirt. It was long-sleeved, but Axel was suddenly struck by the thinness of the fabric and the slight hunch of Roxas's shoulders. He lengthened his stride.

"Hey, kid, if you're cold—"

"Shut up," Roxas barked again. He stopped and whirled around, nearly colliding with Axel. The redhead had just enough time to regain his balance before Roxas grated out, "Do you ever _think_ before you do things, Axel?"

Axel relaxed slightly. Silence was hard to follow, but lectures he understood.

"You can't just pick fights with whoever the hell you want to," Roxas said, voice rising. "Riku's a good guy."

Axel looked skeptical. "He was hitting on you."

"He's dating Sora, you idiot," said Roxas, throwing his hands up in exasperation. "Why would he cheat on Sora with Sora's cousin?"

Roxas' words marched slowly into Axel's ear and weaved their way through his brain before settling into place and blowing raspberries at him. He squinted his green eyes slightly. "…Oh."

"Ch. Yeah, 'oh,'" Roxas snarled. He grasped at his spiky hair in frustration. "What the hell am I supposed to do with you? Jesus, Axel, you're going to make all of my friends hate me."

Axel pulled a long, pale hand out of his pocket to scratch at his neck. There was a strange little emotion that he couldn't name growing in the pit of his shriveled little heart. It was starting to suggest all sorts of crazy ideas—that he should pull Roxas into a tight hug. That he should fall to the ground and kiss the blonde's shoes. That he should apologize.

That last one was just a little _too_ crazy.

So the gangly man floundered for a moment and gave a half-shrug before reaching for the cigarettes in his pocket out of habit.

He yanked back his hand in surprise when Roxas swatted at it.

"Don't," the blonde said. But his voice had lost its biting edge. In fact, he sounded kind of, sort of… hurt.

Axel's heart lurched in dismay. He was used to Roxas being angry. In fact, he was so used to it that sometimes pissing the kid off made him smile, but Hurt!Roxas was an entirely different story. It was too much to handle.

He muttered something indistinct under his breath and turned his head to the side as if one of the houses across the street had suddenly done something extremely interesting.

Roxas deflated slightly. "What?" he asked.

Axel scratched viciously at his head with one hand, unable to meet the other boy's eyes. "Fuck, I said I'm sorry, okay?"

Roxas didn't say anything for a minute. Just looked at him. Then he raised a fist, held it for a few seconds as if seriously considering punching the dolt standing before him, and let it fall limply to his side. "You idiot," he said softly.

Axel caught himself before he could reach for his cigarettes again. He bit at his lower lip, still refusing to meet Roxas's eyes. Finally, he sighed loudly and rubbed at his forehead.

"Look, Rox," he began haltingly, "I know I'm kind of an asshole most of the time" (Roxas snorted) "and I whine too much and I'm probably the goddamn worst person _ever_ to introduce to friends, much less parents." He paused for a second, groping for words. "So… what I mean is..."

But apparently the English language failed him here, because he glanced desperately at Roxas and hunched his shoulders in a strange combination of shrug and grimace. "Fuck," he said, as if that explained everything. Then, "I just love you."

Roxas's scowl faltered. His lips parted slightly to make room for words, but none came. They were suddenly breathing too loudly for such a quiet street at night, it seemed, and Axel was afraid he'd have to start holding his breath until Roxas finally turned away and shoved his hands into his pockets. Roxas hunched his shoulders and scowled at the ground.

Axel reached out tentatively towards Roxas's waist. When the short boy didn't flinch away, Axel slid his arms around his boyfriend's waist and buried his face in his blonde hair, eyes squeezing shut. Breathing shallowly, he pulled the small body against himself.

"God, Roxas, if you ever left," he began, but he couldn't finish the thought because his heart suddenly felt encased in ice. He shivered. Voice barely audible, he whispered, "Please don't leave me."

Roxas's spiky hair moved against his cheek and he opened his eyes. The blonde was turning to look up at him, to thread his fingers into Axel's hair and draw his face down from its towering height until each could feel the other's breath on his lips.

"Idiot," Roxas said again, and it was more of a puff of hot air than a word.

Axel gave in and leaned down to bring their mouths together. His long arms drew tightly around the boy's waist of their own accord, and he bit gently at Roxas's lower lip. Roxas responded by tightening his fingers around long red hair, and Axel had a sneaking suspicion that he felt the kid's lips form a grudging smile against his own.

Axel's lips twitched into a grin and he pulled back slightly to press their foreheads together. He reveled in this small circle of heat, just one forehead against another, and how it made the chill around them meaningless. He would give his life for that. He felt like he already had, and in a moment he'd plummet into a black abyss of nothingness with a glimmer of the blue of Roxas's eyes still imprinted in his mind.

_It would be worth it,_ he thought, and kissed the kid again.


End file.
